The passage compares the responses of South Korea and the United States to the COVID-19 pandemic. When the first cases were detected in both countries on January 20, 2020, South Korea immediately took drastic measures to prevent the spread of the virus, including developing a test, quarantining people, and mass-producing medical equipment. In contrast, the United States did not take the threat seriously, with President Trump downplaying the danger and ignoring requests to prioritize testing and quarantine strategies.
Despite having a pandemic response plan in place, the Trump administration failed to act swiftly, and the country was months behind other nations in securing tests and medical equipment. The US eventually declared a national emergency on March 13, 2020, and implemented social distancing guidelines, but Trump's response was inconsistent, and he often contradicted his own experts.
As a result, South Korea was able to contain the outbreak and return to normal by April 2020, while the US continued to struggle with the pandemic, leading to a high number of cases and deaths. By October 1, 2020, the US had lost over 200,000 lives to the virus, compared to fewer than 3,000 if the country had managed to keep its death rate the same as South Korea's.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. On January 19, 2020, a 35-year-old American man entered an emergency health clinic in Washington state with a fever and cough.
2. The man had been suffering from symptoms for four days and had recently arrived from Wuhan, China.
3. On the same day, a 35-year-old South Korean woman arrived at Incheon International Airport in Seoul with similar symptoms.
4. Both individuals tested positive for the novel coronavirus on January 20, 2020.
5. South Korea took immediate action to prevent the spread of the virus, including developing a test and quarantining people.
6. The United States had emergency plans in place for dealing with epidemics, but the Trump administration did not take immediate action.
7. In 2015, South Korea had a Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak that spread to 186 people, resulting in 36 deaths.
8. The US had a pandemic response plan in place, created by the George W. Bush administration, which was used to fight Ebola in 2014.
9. The plan was passed on to the Trump administration, but they disbanded the pandemic response team in 2018.
10. On January 18, 2020, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar informed the White House National Security Council about the emerging outbreak.
11. Azar formed a task force of top public health experts to prepare the country for a worst-case scenario.
12. The task force's priorities included medical equipment, testing, and a quarantine strategy.
13. The Trump administration was slow to respond to the outbreak, and the president downplayed the danger.
14. On February 6, 2020, the World Health Organization shipped out 250,000 coronavirus tests to various countries, but the US did not receive any because the CDC said they didn't need them.
15. By February 6, the CDC had only shipped out 90 tests, most of which were faulty.
16. On February 26, 2020, Trump's team publicly announced recommendations to limit public gatherings, close schools, and most offices.
17. The president was angry about the announcement and canceled a meeting about social distancing.
18. On March 13, 2020, Trump declared a national emergency, and the government's race to secure tests and medical equipment began.
19. By March 16, 2020, Trump announced social distancing guidelines, but wanted to roll them back earlier.
20. South Korea emerged from isolation and was heading back to normal by the beginning of April 2020.
21. The US was still struggling with the pandemic, with record-high unemployment numbers and a large number of cases.
22. By October 1, 2020, the US had over 200,000 deaths from COVID-19.
23. On October 2, 2020, President Trump announced that he had contracted the virus.